Not crazy, just hurting.

By Mohani Niza

(Dr Adnan Omar. Picture by The Star)

IT’S never easy being young. Pop culture classics such as the film ‘Rebel without a
Cause’ and the book ‘Catcher in the Rye’ articulated the restlessness and angst of
young adulthood, but it seems that Generation Y (Gen Y) - those born in the mid 1980’s
and after - have it much harder.

Academic stress, sexual awakening and body image are just a few of the classic blues
that accompany young adulthood. However these problems intensify further for Gen Y,
due to an increasingly fast-paced life and the weakening of family ties, says Dr Adnan
Omar who heads the Counseling and Psychological Services Centre (CPSC) at Taylor’s
University College.

“More and more parents are divorcing, and parents nowadays are usually too busy
working to pay attention to their children,” he explains.
Thus Gen Y faces a sense of loneliness as they find themselves unable to communicate
their concerns to their parents. Added to this is the quickening pace of daily life which
subjects Gen Y to a lot of expectations and stress. This ultimately shows up in the rise
of mental illnesses among them, which includes addiction, depression and anxiety.

The numbers say it all: according to the National Suicide Registry of Malaysia, the
largest age-group of Malaysians committing suicide is those aged 20 to 29. Dr Kadir
Abu Bakar, the vice-president of the Malaysian Psychiatric Association notes that the
rate of mental health patients among the young have increased from 14 per cent in
1996 to nearly 20 per cent in 2006.

Despite the alarming statistics, mental illness remains a misunderstood topic.

During the run-up to the first Taylor’s Mental Health Week in 2008, several students
were quizzed about their knowledge of mental health. “Is that a new McDonald’s
burger?” responded a student when asked if he knew what schizophrenia was. When
asked what was mental illness, one student blurted, “It’s that crazy thing!” while others
were silent.

The Counseling and Psychological Services Centre (CPSC) aims to rectify the lack of
awareness about mental health awareness by engaging with students and lecturers
alike. It occasionally holds talks regarding various issues that concern students such as
depression, exam anxiety, stress management and how to lead a balanced life and
offers counseling for students. It also tries to reach out on a big-scale. The recently
concluded Taylor’s Second Annual Mental Health Week which was open to both
students and the public had experts talking about issues such as depression, addiction,
personality disorders, suicide, sleep, learning and eating disorders and schizophrenia.

However, Taylor’s students are still largely unaware of The Counseling and
Psychological Services Centre, with only two per cent of students seeking its services.

Dr Adnan hopes that this will soon change.

“The more people know about mental health, the better informed they are, the less
prejudice they have and the more they can help others,” he says.

Need a listening ear? The Counseling and Psychological Services Centre offers
individual, group and family counseling and can be contacted at extension
number 5024/5025.